RUSS Posted December 17, 2009 Report Share Posted December 17, 2009 As you may know I’m currently being helped by Clive on my Netsuke apprenticeship…here’s one I did last year……. I had already made a necklace out of tagua just for fun and was looking at the shape from above….I thought it looked like a catfish with its tail turned back on its self….anyway I played around with some ideas in clay and showed them to Clive. He’d kindly given me some hippo tusk so this seemed the right material to go with, once again he helped me through the process from start to finish advising me through out……cheers mucka…!!!!! Catfish …Hippo Tusk Eyes ……Amber Inlay……. Shoot from the hip with your comments…..don’t hold back………….. …….. Russ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Ruslander Posted December 17, 2009 Report Share Posted December 17, 2009 Love the flow and finish. It just sings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JP Anderson Posted December 17, 2009 Report Share Posted December 17, 2009 Simple and beautiful. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RUSS Posted December 18, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 18, 2009 Mike and JP......Many thanks for your comments..........It's very much appreciated. Russell........... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janel Posted December 18, 2009 Report Share Posted December 18, 2009 Hi Russ, Rather than simply compliment the success of this piece, which I would like to do anyway, how about if you shoot from the hip yourself and write about what you see as successful or not so with this piece. Is there anything you would change or do differently? You have captured specific characteristics of the catfish, with subtle indentations and flowing lines, and the clear and pleasant details on the underside have a good rhythm. It must feel good in the hand. Did you catch a catfish for a closer look? What is the fourth image? Janel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Professor Rhubarb Posted December 18, 2009 Report Share Posted December 18, 2009 I think there's great balance in this piece. Smooth and oily on the top, soft and intricate on the bottom. Nice subject, too. Well done! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RUSS Posted December 18, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 18, 2009 Interesting question Janel, I find once I’ve finished a piece even though your pleased with how it’s turned out there’s still that feeling one or two areas could be worked on a little more, I personally find these areas quite difficult to find, you’ve been looking at it for so long you can’t see the woods for the trees…………..Hope I’m making sense…………… Having not had a look at this one for a while where do I start……… I like the composition on this one, the way the tail moves back in on it’s self, seems to flow quite nicely and at the same time creating a himotoshi…….. Eyes can make or break the final look of any carving, I’m happy with size and shape but maybe the background could be a little more subtle……. Mmmmmmm…!! The top is quite interesting, I had initially wanted to put the dorsal fin on as you would normally find, I always think this is quite difficult to do on any type of fish……Some artists have come up with superb designs over the years when trying to create a Netsuke using a single fish as their subject………..Instead of putting the dorsal fin on there Clive suggested that just a subtle line indicating movement may work well…………at the same time complimenting the rest of the body…………I think this worked really well... There are also a couple of areas on this piece which the photos don’t really pick up, photo 7 just above the end of the tail what seems to be an uneven surface is actually small ripples in the skin which is carved on both sides, I hadn’t put these on at first but once carved they really made a big difference to the overall look of it……….. Maybe sharpening up some of the lines would give a more realistic look too, where does it all end... There are so many different types of catfish to choose from with lots of different characteristics………some have more feelers than others, some have much larger tails and fins…….etc…… I didn’t want to carve a realistic catfish in the anatomical sense, just collect different qualities from each one to create my own little catfish…………….. Your right too about this feeling great in the hand……….silky smooth… Picture 4 is the necklace I carved , it’s strange but I keep going back to this shape time and time again looking for something else within it………something will turn up soon I hope. I’ve not carved this year much at all……..I started a couple of pieces but then got Netsuke Block…… ……..there is no medication for this…. This has happened before but now I feel ready to create once again. …………….. After I’ve done some Christmas shopping that is……….. Not caught a Catfish yet, there are some monsters in Russia and in the Spanish rivers too…….. The guy on the left of this picture seems to be having problems holding this small one……. Once again many thanks for the comments Russell……………………. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles Wu Posted December 19, 2009 Report Share Posted December 19, 2009 one lovely fish and one wealthy fish Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Chan Posted January 11, 2010 Report Share Posted January 11, 2010 I like the form and character of this catfish, it's just right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RUSS Posted January 11, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 11, 2010 Many thanks for taking the time to comment Charles and Brian.......... Russ....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bella Nicol Posted December 23, 2011 Report Share Posted December 23, 2011 I think this is one of my very favorites, I wish I had one of my own he's just great! I'd love to see more soon. Best wishes, Bella Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christophe Posted December 26, 2011 Report Share Posted December 26, 2011 Hi Russ, Well, what's not to like about this piece, the sensation of mouvement, the skin like texture due to your final polishing (by the way, 'til which grit you went for the final sanding process), the details...well done. Also, I love the eyes inlay. I guess it help to have Clive around, but anyhow Clive or not, you are one talented artist. Thank's for sharing your work. Christophe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.